Conventional lasers generally provide very specific spectral outputs depending upon the laser material. If a spectral output other than that achievable with available laser materials or a less specific spectral output is desired, dye lasers or Ti-sapphire (Ti:Al.sub.2 O.sub.3) lasers may be used. However, Ti-sapphire lasers are large and bulky. Dye lasers are large and bulky and also require fluid components which can be toxic.
Separately, there is increasing interest in optically interconnecting integrated circuits (IC) within multichip modules (MCM). This has been done using polymer waveguides to make passive components such as splitters and couplers in combination with electro-optic polymeric material to make switches and modulators. The complexity of such interconnect systems could be greatly reduced if the pumping lasers could be incorporated in the polymer waveguide material itself. However, doping the polymer with rare earth elements to create a laser has been unsuccessful because the polymer quenches the laser action. Even so, the demand for such devices has been strong because of the ease with which polymer components can be manufactured simply, easily, at low temperatures and with well-known and inexpensive materials and techniques.